Content Type

Nielsen’s initial investigation across major countries around the world has found significant spikes in the hoarding of emergency supplies is occurring in China, the U.S. and Italy, where consumers are rushing to build what are being labelled “pandemic pantries.”

At a macro level, economic conditions around the globe ended 2018 on an upbeat note. Global consumer confidence was at its highest level in 14 years, but 39 of the 64 countries included in the global Consumer Confidence Index reported declines in consumer sentiment.

Fast-moving consumer goods and GDP growth in Q4 2018 was strongest in Asia-Pacific, and consumers in the region feel the best globally about their financial well-being. Comparatively, only 37% of consumers in Europe believe their conditions have improved over the past five years.

In a new gender-focused study, we looked at consumer confidence, economic sentiment and spending intentions by gender over the past five years to understand how the needs and wants of female consumers have evolved.

Globally, 58%of global consumers feel they are better off financially than they were five years ago, but there is also a sizeable proportion of consumers who feel that they are only in survival mode, with sentiment differing considerably by region and country.

A slight drop in consumer sentiment in the second quarter was reflected in a slight pullback in spending in certain markets, as skepticism about the future had some consumers feeling as though their free cash would be better served in savings rather than on discretionary purchases.